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try to be honest in all of my reviews, and this will be no different. I wanted not to like Fire Emblem. I assumed that there had to be a really good reason that a strong-selling title from a beloved Japanese series would not have made it to North America. As you can tell from my score, this was not the case. I absolutely LOVED every minute I played this game, and continue to play it at least once a week.

Story

To discuss the story in great depth would certainly lead to spoilers. I do not want to ruin the intricate attention to detail that the authors have so lovingly crafted into this title.

Without going into great story-ruining detail (beyond the ''Tutorial'' chapters), you are placed in the role of a Tactician. As such, you are responsible for assisting Lyn, a woman who is attempting to rid her locale of invading hordes. Along the way, you meet up with several like-minded characters who wish to help you with your quest. Some first appear as enemies, however. If you choose to attack them rather than talk to them (which are different menu commands), you will find yourself possibly missing out on their contribution to the storyline.

As your cabal increases in number, you have a choice as to which characters to choose from. There is an ''old woman'' who can do a reading for you where she occasionally recommends that you take someone along (usually because they will be needed to talk to another character). This ''Augury'' costs you money, but is very helpful to the newbie turn-based strategist.

Characters

The story really has strong character development, and a wide range of characters you will encounter:
* Archer
* Cavalier
* Paladin
* Monk
* Magician
* Lord
* Wyvern Rider
* Pegasus Knight
* Nomad
* Fighter
* Thief
...

Most of the characters have a deep back-story that unfolds throughout the game. Like many RPGs, the characters level-up through an experience-based system, which automatically improves their personal statistics as well. Items throughout the game also act as power-ups, allowing your characters to evolve into a ''super'' class based upon those which they started from.

Gameplay

This is a turn-based strategy game. When two characters are near one another, they have the opportunity to attack one another (depending on their attack range). Each class of character has their own type of attack (largely dependent upon the weapon or magic that they wield).

The fighting in the game is based upon a triad, much like rock-paper-scissors:

* Axes beat Lances
* Lances beat Swords
* Swords beat Axes

The same can be said for magic, where you have 3 types of magic and each has one type that it is strong against and one that it is weaker against:

* Elemental Magic beats Light Magic
* Light Magic beats Dark Magic
* Dark Magic beats Elemental Magic

This makes for very interesting gameplay, as you can have a relatively low-level character with light magic beat the heck out of a higher-level Dark Mage, simply because of the magic balance.

SNES Level Animation and Good Attention to Detail

I expect GBA games to have decent animation and sound, and Fire Emblem does well on this platform. The music is great, the sound effects are appropriate and well-timed.

What really caught my eye was the attention to detail. If a unit is holding one type of weapon, when you cut to the battle sequence, they fight with that weapon (not their default). I was especially impressed with the fighting sequences, although I eventually turned them off for the later chapters so I could spend less time watching fights and more time strategizing!

A really great feature of this game is the ability to save almost any time. At any time that you are in control (e.g. not when computer or ''other'' is moving), you can choose to ''Suspend'' your game. This means that all moves up to that point will be saved, and you can continue from that point on. This was very important to my enjoyment, as later battles can take upwards of an hour a piece. If you want to try a silly ''blitz'' approach to map out the level, you can have a throw-away save spot and use it to store your explorations.

Well worth noting is the automatic saving feature. A couple of times I found myself up very late at night, trying to finish a level before the power of my GBA ran out. Ignoring the orange light, I continued to battle. When the machine ran out of power, as all batteries inevitably do, I was very worried that my progress would be lost! Luckily, all moves up to the point that the power went out were saved to the slot I was working on. I wouldn't recommend this approach, as I am sure I jeopardized the stability of said save file, but it is good to know that if you get too involved, you won't lose everything!

Will This Gather Dust?

It certainly won't in my collection. I have played this game to death, and still have a few chapters left to conquer. This is the kind of game you play, then rethink how you completed the chapter...could I have saved more guards if I had only...could I have reached that village before it was sacked by barbarians???

Well worth its price, and I do truly wish this series had been brought to North America earlier.

Overall Recommendations:
You'll like this if:
* You like RPGs.
* You like medieval-themed games.
* You liked Warcraft I or II or StarCraft.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 02/10/04